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He grabbed for Jayla’s knife, but she went into action and stuck her foot out to trip him. The skinny guy fell to the concrete, his bony arms barely catching him.
“You little—”
I darted forward and kicked his rib cage. And then I did it again.
Charlie gripped me around the waist and dragged me from his friend. My back hit the hard wall, and his meaty fist raised to punch me.
If he succeeded, he’d knock me out. I couldn’t let that happen.
I ducked at the last second, and his knuckles crashed into the bricks, the snapping of bones resonating through the night. Charlie screamed and examined his bloody mess of a hand. While he was distracted, I spun behind him and jammed my boot into the back of his knee.
He crashed to the ground, using his good hand to catch himself, but that left an opening for me. I kicked his chin, and he twisted around, landing on his back.
“Tate, watch out!”
Jayla’s voice had me spinning, and I jerked my head to the side, barely missing Miles’s strike, his knuckles grazing my cheek. I blocked his feeble kick and then crushed my elbow into his sternum.
Miles cursed and stumbled away, grabbing his torso. “You’re going to pay for this, little bitch.”
A dry laugh slipped out. “I’ve heard that before.”
As he came at me again, I clutched his arm, pulling so hard he staggered right into my fist. After another hit to his jaw, he crashed to the concrete, out cold. I lurched forward and started checking his pockets for his wallet.
Score. I snatched the wad of twenties out and dropped the cheap leather case on the ground.
“The big one’s up.” Jayla bounced on her toes, pointing to Charlie as he scrambled to his feet.
I rolled my shoulders and shook my arms. This one wouldn’t stay down, but he couldn’t move as fast, so running might be our best option.
“Stay the hell out of this neighborhood.” I sprinted toward him, ducking as he tried to catch me, and I rammed my knee into his groin.
His yell traveled down the alley, scaring away a few stray cats. Before he recovered, I gripped his greasy hair to hold him as I clawed his face.
Whatever works.
Charlie snarled and shoved me off, falling into a pile of moldy boxes. He held his crotch, cursing up a storm while blood trickled down his cheek from my nails.
“If you come to this side of town again, you’ll be leaving in a body bag.” I snatched Jayla’s arm, and we booked it out of the alley and down the sidewalk.
“Holy shit,” she screeched, her wool scarf fluttering behind her. “That was amazing!”
Ididhave some serious skills.
After a few minutes, we stopped and leaned against the exterior of the Crispy Bacon Diner to catch our breath.
“You kicked their asses.” She brushed black curls off her forehead and tucked them back into her gray knit hat, grinning from ear to ear. “The big, dumb one looked like a bear that got stung by a wasp right in the nuts.”
My lips pressed together, but I couldn’t stop the laughter from bursting out. “I’ve never seen anything like that, but it sounds accurate.”
“I saw it happen once when I lived in the mountains with my great aunt,” she said. “The bear yelled and stumbled around until it jumped into the creek. I felt sorry for the bear. I don’t feel sorry for the guy.”
“He deserved it. And more.” I rolled my neck and flexed my fingers. Two of my knuckles were split, and bruises would color them in a few hours, but stopping those creeps from hurting the kid was worth it.
Rescuing her this one time didn’t make me soft. Besides, I got some cash out of it.
I tilted my head toward the diner. “You hungry? It’s on me. Actually, it’s on Miles.”
“Hell, yeah.” Jayla darted for the door and yanked it open. “I want a big milkshake.”
